Back up pictures from digital cameras with USB mass storage class interface to USB flash drives

VF2F2 is a file backup device for data from a digital camera with a USB Mass Storage Class interface to a USB Flash drive. At the push of a button, all the picture files on the camera are copied to a unique folder of a USB Flash drive so that the digital camera memory can be re-used to take further pictures. This is an ideal accessory for digital camera users who wish to back up their photos on the road without having to carry a notebook PC, or for people who want to share or swap their photos without requiring a card reader. VF2F2 is powered by two AAA-size alkaline batteries.

Vinculum USB Host Microcontroller

The VNC1L microcontroller used on this digital camera to USB Flash drive backup controller is part of the FTDI Vinculum USB Host Microcontroller Series. The VNC1L chip features an integrated 8/32-bit MCU and 64k embedded Flash memory. Not only does the chip handle data transfer functions on two USB Host/Client Interfaces, but it encapsulates several USB device classes as well. You don't have to worry about having to write the firmware to implement those functions.

When interfacing to mass storage devices such as USB Flash drives, the VNC1L transparently handles the FAT file structure communicating via UART, SPI or parallel FIFO interfaces via a simple-to-implement command set. The VNC1L device features two USB ports which can be individually configured by firmware as Host or Slave (client) ports.

VNC1L brings cost-effective USB Host capability to products that previously did not have the hardware resources available. As VNC1L comes complete with FTDI's in-house developed firmware, there are no USB software stacks to license, and no knowledge of USB is required to use these devices.